How to strip and paint my radiators?

Hello! I have two cast iron radiators that I need to strip and then re-paint. The local stripping service is charging me about 拢40 per radiator but the re-painting is coming to over 拢100 per radiator which I simply cannot afford. Someone suggested I get the rads stripped and then get them painted separately, at a car painting garage that use similar heat resistent paint.





Do you have any suggestions? How do I find such a painting place? Can I do this myself?





Any help/direction would be appreciated.How to strip and paint my radiators?
First of all, you really don't need to strip them. If the paint is flaking off in some areas, or there are rust spots, sanding the spots smoothe will be fine. Then, get yourself a can of Hi Temperature Primer Paint - The paintstore will help you with this. Put a coat of primer on it, and then 2 coats of Hi Temp paint of the color you want.How to strip and paint my radiators?
80s kid is right. There's two brands in the States - Rustoleum and Armorall - that would fit the bill. The product you listed as being available on ebay would suit your purpose well. Use a steel/wire brush and remove any loose paint, spray a primer coat on, let it dry well, and then spray on a topcoat. The U.S. brands are available in aluminum color and other colors and cost about $4-$5 U.S. per can.





Because it's an aerosol paint, you won't have any problem filling the nooks and crannies; just spray them first and then work outward and spray the outer surfaces last.
About two years ago, I did one myself. Its mounted on a basement ceiling about one inch beneath. In the total I spent 40hours--so yes, you absolutely can diy, but be prepared for the long run. Stripping, I started with Circa 1850 ';furniture stripper';--be very careful not to get it on your skin or anything plastic, but otherwise its pretty much just methyl alcohol (not too scary). I also resorted to my old trick, the propane torch for the really thick spots--here you should be wary of too much heat because I suspect that lead paint becomes lead vapour--anyone know about that? Then a bit of elbow grease with sandpaper for the few remaining finicky spots. Then clean (use vinegar), rinse, rinse, rinse again, and again, then dry, dry, dry (use the torch again (or activate your furnace!) to get the water out of the porous surface)---this is always a crucial step for successful painting. To paint cast iron--I researched it ALOT--the problem is that its porous and holds moisture--so use that to your advantage and use latex primer. The best you'll find is Zinsser brand which is a high tech 100% acrylic latex (key words for any brand) which they also call 'primer, sealer, stain killer, all-surface bond coat--and I fully agree having used it to cover all sorts of raunchy old things (outdoors as well). For top-coat I used Behr EXTERIOR acrylic latex semi-gloss (use any brand, so long as its good and exterior). The key is to get 100% coverage, so in the end its like dipping your rad in a vat of molten rubber--it'll never come off, and latex is flexible so it stretches as needed--heat resistant paint is for barbecues, and its useless there too! I tried a lot of wacky methods to get 'behind': dilute paint squirted from a Windex bottle followed by a blast of compressed air; a small gun cleaning brush with a wire handle bent to reach behind; and the most effective was a cheap disposable dollar store foam brush, duct- taped to a paint stir stick--a DIY dream. Two years later this rad still looks like it just came off the factory floor--it was originally made circa 1920! Mine was tricky because of where it is, and my various wacky trials, so hopefully you can do yours in half the time. Good luck, and as you struggle through it, remember that you can't buy the satisfaction you'll get. P.S. we're in Canada--our rads do see some use...